My ancestors came to Bengal from Rajasthan generations ago. I was born in Kolkata, studied in St Xavier's school and college, after which i spent a major part of my life in Mumbai. Yet for me there is no ambiguity - i am a Bengali.

Whenever i reach Kolkata i know i have reached 'home'. The best of my growing years have been in Kolkata. I have enjoyed doing what all young boys and girls in Kolkata do - long 'adda' sessions criticising the sins of the capitalist world, savouring Bengali delicacies, phuchkas, jhalmuri and, when the pocket money allowed, eating at Flury's.

Bengalis, as a community, have always been forward looking, intelligent and highly emotional. I vividly recollect during my school and college days, the Bengali obsession for excelling in academics. Joint entrance examinations would put an entire Bengali household in a virtual state of emergency. A Bengali cannot be ordinary - he has to be extraordinary was the maxim.

I was in my early 20s when the Left Front won the state assembly elections in 1977. The only time, we as a family, felt like leaving Kolkata was during the Naxalite movement when living in Kolkata was not very safe. For nearly three-and-half decades, the Left brought political stability to Bengal, but the dividends of that stability could not be reaped by the government or the state's industry.

Sadly, over the years, Bengal slid into becoming one of the poorest states in the country. Instead of being a catalyst for growth, state and industry, it repelled every major investment opportunity that could have resurrected the pride of this once beautiful state.

Jyoti Basu was a leader whom i admired. He was a true 'bhadralok' who ruled the state well, but sadly there was hardly any industrial progress during his time. His successor, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, started with a lot of promise but lost the plot somewhere. Not getting support from powerful party politburo members made it worse.

Two years ago Mamata Banerjee upstaged the CPM government, giving way to a new power in the state. Mamata was seen as a no-nonsense politician, a doer. She roped in distinguished names from politics, bureaucracy, industry, art and literature and created a winning team that had everything going for it to propel Bengal to a new growth trajectory.

After years, once again, there was renewed hope - a hope of positive change - poriborton. What was the change that Bengal sought? Change in favour of freedom of expression. Change that would arrest lawlessness and hooliganism. Change that permitted forward movement.

What happened, unfortunately, is far from encouraging. In the past few months, repeated incidents of gagging the voice of the media and freedom of speech - combined with outbreaks of unrest and political violence - have shocked the public. Out of the blue came the chit fund scam and the alleged nexus between scamsters and the government. The sad truth is Bengal is back to square one, with zero poriborton.

What changed the galloping economic engine of the 1960s to a snail's crawl? Industry needs labour productivity, easy access to land and good infrastructure. In Bengal, landholdings are highly fragmented and state policy is not conducive to obtaining contiguous land. Though strikes, red flags and agitations have been a way of life, things have improved. However, labour productivity is still a serious issue.

Industry and Bengal have become antithetical. Philips, Shaw Wallace, ICI and Brooke Bond moved out long ago. Haldia Petrochemicals - once Bengal's showcase project - is limping, with issues between the state government and the promoters having remained unresolved. There is hardly any progress on JSW's Salboni project. Emami and Shrachi are contemplating moving outside the state.

Multinationals like Linde have moved, leaving ITC, CESC, Exide and a few others as the only large companies reminiscent of 'industry' in Bengal. With the exit of the Tatas from Singur, Bengal seems to have signed its investment death warrant. Tata's factories could have been Bengal's 'aha moment', but that was not to be. Industry is in desperate need of oxygen in Bengal.

Bengal's politicians need an idea that will change the existing paradigm. Perhaps the answer lies in Bengal repositioning itself as the creative and intellectual capital of the country. The Bengali mind is highly suited for advertising, films, academics, music and IT. Can Bengal's policies work in tandem to create an education hub like Manipal or a well-connected, contemporary IT environment like Bangalore or an advertising hub like Madison Avenue? It is high time the land of legends - Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore, Satyajit Ray and Amartya Sen - reinvents itself as the California of India where creativity and entrepreneurship flourish.

Every day when i wake up in faraway Mumbai, my heart beats for Bengal with the hope of poriborton. And now, once again, Mamata's Trinamool Congress has swept the panchayat polls, which leaves me wondering whether or not Mamata, irrespective of winning the elections, will be able to win back the confidence of India Inc. I hope Bengal can reclaim its glorious destiny. Even though my Marwari mind shies away from investing in Bengal, my Bengali heart constantly seeks an opportunity to do so.